4AM Storms
by o-WinterQueen-o
Summary: Honestly, the sight of Orihime like this made her heart beat faster.


**So this is a short little TatsuHime piece for the Bleach Big Bang's first Bing: Seasonal changes. It was really fun to write and explore my favorite little f/f ship instead of ShiroIchi for once. The Bleach Big Bang is a really cool collaboration event between fan artist and authors that y'all should definitely check out! Sign ups close December 5 so I highly encourage you to sign up if you're interested! (see bleachbigbang . tumblr . com for details) Anyways, on with the gay!**

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Thunder.

The low rumble of distant storms approaching rolled over the sky of Karakura like the growl of some gigantic ancient beast hiding above the clouds. Rain was no stranger to this town of theirs. Thick grey clouds loomed in the sky for over a week now, leaving brief sprinkles and showers here and there every few hours with scarcely a break in the bleary grey for the sun to shine. When it did shine, it was only for the briefest of times before new clouds with fresh showers to roll in. A telltale sign Summer was drawing to a close.

With storms raging in the pacific, as was common this time of year, it wasn't unusual for them to see such heavy rainfall. Yet that didn't stop the joy associated with storms from some.

Tatsuki woke to a cold bed and the sound of a fresh wave of thunder. Though she had grown used to the sound of rain lulling her to sleep these last few weeks, the booming clap of thunder was another thing entirely. The noise however, was the least of her worries. Ordinarily, she would have simply turned back over and fallen asleep once more. After all, it was just a little storm. No big deal. A cold and empty bed on other other hand, now that raised a mild alarm.

" 'Hime…?" her voice was hoarse with sleep, "Where'd ya go Hime…?"

Sitting up in bed, she swung her legs over the edge of the bed to investigate her girlfriend's mysterious absence. Outside the warmth of the blankets, the house was cool with the chill of night, but not cold enough to warrant a robe or slippers. Rather than bother with either, she made her way across the bedroom to peer out into the hallway.

Her first thought was that maybe Orihime got up to use the bathroom or maybe to make a snack downstairs in the kitchen. The bathroom at the end of the hall's light was off and door ajar… so no Hime there… She sighed. The kitchen then. Shuffling footsteps departed the bedroom to make her way down the hall.

Yawning, she moved around the house heedless of her surroundings. Upon reaching the stairwell that would take her down to the kitchen, another booming crash of thunder sounded out, loud enough to rattle the windows of the house. Tatsuki jumped somewhat in alarm, eyes automatically going up to peer out the wide window adjacent to the stairs.

Lightning flashed brightly behind the glass as the rumble of thunder continued, illuminating a certain figure in sitting by the window.

Orihime.

She sat perched on the cushions that rested upon the bookshelves that framed the window with her legs drawn up to her chest. In the daylight, the window acted as the perfect place for Tatsuki's mother to curl up with a book and read. She got the idea from some western decorating magazines. Now though, it held not her plump middle aged mother bent over a book, but her soft sweet girlfriend with the most beautiful look of awe upon her face as she stared up into the tumultuous heavens above.

The scene was gorgeous.

For a moment Tatsuki stood leaning against the banister of the stairs to watch Orihime watch the storm. How precious her girlfriend was. Ethereal, illuminated by the bright white light of the flashing electric currents outside, silver eyes shining unlike anything else as dark sleep-mussed auburn hair framed her angelic face. Honestly, the sight of Orihime like this made her heart beat faster.

Swallowing back against the tightness in her throat, Tatsuki walked away from the staircase towards the seat at the window where Orihime sat. Her girlfriend's eyes did not move from their place gazing up at the clouds, but her lips quirked up into a small but bright smile. Tatsuki could have sworn her heart stopped right then and there.

"Hi there Tatsuki~"

"What are you doing up 'Hime?"

Orihime's grin only widened. "Watching the rain."

She snorted. "I can see that. It's four in the morning though. Don't you have class tomorrow?"

"Eh… There's flooding down town so it's cancelled. Besides, the storm is too pretty to just sleep through it!" At this point Orihime was absolutely pouting. " Every storm is a unique experience! It's like the sky is dancing for us Tatsuki! It would be a waste to just ignore it!"

"I see." Tatsuki smirked, nodding along to Orihime's little tirade. She couldn't help but let out a brief laugh in the end though. Leaning over, she pressed a brief kiss to her cheek as if to appease Orihime for her ignorance. "I guess I never thought of it like that… I think get what you mean though."

For the first time since she sat down, Orihime tore her eyes away from the sky to look at Tatsuki with wide shining eyes. She could practically see stars burning in their depths with how intensely joyous they shone. "You do?!" her lips formed a delicate 'o' shape as she awaited Tatsuki's answer.

Damn, how did anyone have any right to look that cute? Nonetheless Tatsuki nodded, not trusting her voice to not crack if she tried to speak.

She was rewarded for her understanding by a smile so radiant, it could give the very sun a run for its money as Orihime reached over to grab her hands. "I'm so glad you get it Tatsuki~ Let's watch the storm together for a little while longer? Okay?"

"O-Of course Hime… not too long though… otherwise we're not going to want to wake up in the morning."

"Alright Tats~u~ki~" Orihime hummed softly, squeezing her hand.

Tatsuki reached over to pull her girlfriend over so Orihime could lean against her. A head came to rest against Tatsuki's shoulder and her arms moved to wrap around Orihime's waist as they watched the bright lightning and pounding rain.

It was nice. Even through the early morning weariness, there was nothing Tatsuki would rather do, nowhere she would rather be, than here with Orihime watching the storm rage on.

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 **Thanks for reading, please review!**


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